The Chronicles of SeeD
by The Storm Angel
Summary: Rate "R" for the nude scene in Chapter 6. But it's done at last! YAY!
1. Chapter 1

The Chronicles of SeeD The Chronicles of SeeD

**By The Storm Angel **

** **

Book I: The Legacy of the Lion

** **

Disclaimer: I do not own the FFVIII characters, and am (sadly) not making any money off of this. No copyright infringement intended, really. Now on with the story!

Chapter One

The eighteen-year-old SeeD gritted his teeth as the Flare spell hit him and forced him back ten feet. He quickly rushed forward, his gunblade in his left hand, his right hand raised in front of him in an all-out charge. As he approached his opponent, he swung his gunblade down, aiming for the throat. His opponent simply raised his own gunblade and easily parried the blow. The SeeD (whose name was Davis, in case you were wondering), seeing no other option, raised his palm and cast Thundaga on his opponent. The spell simply bounced off of his opponent's Reflect spell and hit him instead. Davis shook from the shock, and rushed forward again, this time feigning an upward swipe, and going for the midsection. His opponent saw this coming, blocked the attack, and tripped Davis with a foot-sweep. Before Davis could get up, however, his opponent's gunblade was at his throat. He had lost, again. Which wouldn't be so bad if he hadn't lost to his commander. But what made it worse was the fact that the commander was his father, Squall Leonhart.

"You're getting better," said Squall, helping Davis up. "But you need to work on your timing."

"Gee, thanks," Davis replied, pushing away Squall's hand and standing up. He brushed himself off. "Are we done yet?" he asked. Behind them, somebody clapped, and Rinoa got off of the rock that she had been sitting on while she watched the training session.

"He's just like you at that age, you know that, Squall?" she said, smiling. Davis looked at his mother, the Sorceress Rinoa. Sure, she wasn't about to turn evil and destroy the world, but it was weird, having a Sorceress as your mother. Maybe that was why he had a First Class Para-magic rank.

"Whatever," Davis said. "Excuse me, but I have a class to attend."

Davis didn't even bother to wait for an answer before walking off back to Balamb Garden, which was now stationed just outside of his hometown of Winhill. When he was gone, Rinoa turned back to her husband.

"See what I mean?" she said, grinning widely.

"Whatever," Squall replied. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I _do _have a Garden to command."

Rinoa giggled. "You haven't change a bit in 22 years, you know that?" she said. "When will you come and visit me again?"

"Why don't you just stay at Garden?" Squall asked. Rinoa shook her head.

"The students there don't trust me. They think that I'm out to kill them."

"But you're not."

"Try telling them that."

Squall gave up. "I'll be back soon, OK?" he said. Rinoa smiled.

"Sure," she replied. "See you soon."

They embraced briefly and Squall headed back to Garden.

------------------------

Felicia Kinneas sighed. She was trying to put together her new weapon, the M203 machine gun, complete with a grenade launcher. She slapped the clip of blank bullets into the chamber and fired for the sixteenth time. The gun jammed.

"Dammit!" she said in frustration. If she didn't get this gun together soon, then she would not have a weapon for combat. Then again, she could always use the grenade launcher. She loaded a paint grenade into the launcher, turned to the target, and fired. The launcher worked a little too well: the paint grenade went straight through the cardboard target, and out of the open window. She winced as she heard a familiar voice screaming outside.

**"FELICIA!!"**

_"Uh-oh"_ she thought. _"I must've hit Brandon!" _

_ _

Sure enough, two minutes later a tall, blonde-haired, blue-eyed SeeD ran into her dorm, his SeeD uniform covered in red paint.

"Do you have any idea how much these uniforms cost to be cleaned?" he said, his blue eyes locking with Felicia's emerald green eyes. Felicia laughed and stroked her long, toffee-brown hair.

"What're you laughing at?" Brandon asked. Felicia picked up a jug of water and threw the contents all over him. The paint washed away with the water.

"It's paint used for paint-ball guns," she said. "It comes off with water."

Brandon grumbled. "Shit. Well you could have told me that _before _you threw the water on me!" he said. Again, Felicia laughed. Brandon Dincht had been her friend for as long as she could remember, and he had not changed at all. And the fact that they were both top SeeDs meant that they often ended up working together, which was fun.

"Excuse me?" said a female voice behind Brandon. Brandon turned, and saw a beautiful blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl standing in the doorway of Felicia's dorm. He stared at her wide-eyed. She had to be one of the sexiest girls he had ever seen. Her long blonde hair fell in waves to her waist, and you could easily get lost in her deep, sea-blue eyes. Her slim figure fit perfectly into her SeeD uniform. The girl looked at him.

"Have I got something on my face?" she asked. Brandon went red and looked down.

"Erm…no," he said. He turned to Felicia. "I have to go."

Felicia chuckled. "See you," she said, waving. Brandon left, and the girl turned to Felicia.

"Hi, I just transferred here and I seem to be lost. Can you tell me where dorm number…34 is please?" she said.

"Sure," replied Felicia. "It's two doors down, and to the right."

"Thanks," replied the girl. With that, she picked up her bags and followed Felicia's directions. She soon found her dorm and unlocked it. She looked around. It was…different from her dorm in Trabia Garden. Smaller, more compact, but comfortable nonetheless. She decided to walk around Garden for a while before unpacking her things, but she did put her gunblade, the Hyperion, against the wall. She had been carrying that weapon all day, and it was getting tiresome.

Sophia Almasy sighed and walked out of her dorm to explore Balamb Garden.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two Chapter Two

** **

Davis sat alone at his usual table in the cafeteria. He stared into his tea, and wondered why he didn't just order a beer; he _was _eighteen and allowed to drink. Then he remembered that he hated the taste of alcohol. 

"Hey!" 

Davis turned and saw Felicia running toward him with a grin on her face. 

_"Oh great,"_ he thought. _"Now I'm going to have to pretend that I'm actually interested in whatever she has to say." _

_ _

Felicia sat down next to him and smiled. "What's up?" she asked. 

Davis waved his hand. "Not much. What do you want?" he said. 

"Just thought that I'd say hi," Felicia said cheerfully. "Why are you always so moody?" 

Davis shrugged. "Whatever." 

Felicia shrugged and stood up. "You'll never change," she said. "Well, see you later!" 

She ran off, leaving Davis alone. He sighed and closed his eyes to think. He hadn't had a mission in months, and he was getting really bored just staying in Garden doing nothing. _"Maybe I should go to the training center," _he thought. _"Then again, even that's getting boring with my High-Level magic. Even a T-Rexaur is easy to kill." _

His thoughts were interrupted when somebody sat down at the other side of the table. He opened his eyes and looked across. In the other chair sat a beautiful girl with waist-length blonde hair and blue eyes. She looked straight back at him. 

"You're Davis Leonhart, right?" she said. 

"Yeah, that's right. So?" replied Davis. 

"I've been wanting to meet you. My name's Sophia Almasy." 

Davis looked at her. That surname, Almasy, seemed familiar, but he couldn't put his finger on it. As if she was reading his mind, the girl said, "My father is Seifer Almasy." 

Davis looked at her and shrugged. "The guy who became Sorceress Edea's Knight during the Second Sorceress War?" he said. Sophia returned his look. 

"You don't care?" she asked. 

"Not really, no." 

"I thought you might, since he tried to kill your father more than once, and he Junctioned your mother to Sorceress Adel in the Lunatic Pandora." 

Davis shrugged. "That's in the past. My father's grudges aren't my own. I wouldn't care if he and your father had a duel right now and they killed each other." 

Sophia just looked at him. "You have beautiful eyes," she said. Davis just stared at her in disbelief. 

_"I just told her that I don't care about our fathers' grudges against each other, and she tells me that I have beautiful eyes?" _he thought. "Thanks…you too." 

Sophia smiled. "You're not half as bad as most of my friends in Trabia Garden said you are," she said. "I think you're sweet." 

_"I don't need this," _thought Davis. "Whatever." 

Sophia continued to look at him with her deep, sea-blue eyes. "Nice response. You say that to every girl that's trying to pick you up?"

Davis stared at her in shock. _"She's trying to pick me up?" _he thought. "No other girls have ever tried to pick me up." 

Sophia giggled. "You're cute. How about we meet here on Friday night, around eight?" she said. Davis shrugged. 

"Sure, why not?" he said absently. Sophia smiled at him. 

"Then it's a date!" she said loudly. Sophia stood up and walked off, leaving Davis behind to think about what just happened. At least he was going to think about it, but Felicia plopped down next to him. 

"Oh how sweet!" she said. "You've got yourself a date for Friday!" 

Davis just glanced at her, stood up, and walked away without another word. 

"Spoilsport!" Felicia yelled after him. _"Well, at least he's got himself a date at last." _

_ _

------------------- 

FRIDAY NIGHT

_ _

Davis wore his casual clothing: a black leather jacket over a red shirt with matching black leather pants and long leather boots. He took after his father in his sense of fashion, even though nobody seemed to care. He was waiting in the cafeteria for his 'date'. She finally showed up at ten-past-eight and ran up to him. That's when Davis noticed how attractive she really was, especially in the dress she was wearing. It was emerald green in colour, and reached her knees. Davis also noted that it was a strapless dress, and that Sophia was wearing silk stockings that made her legs look sexy. Well, as sexy as a girl's legs could look. She also had her hair tied up in a ponytail, but it still reached her waist. She smiled at him.

"Sorry I'm late," she said. "But I forgot to unpack when I got here and couldn't find this dress." 

Davis shrugged. "Whatever. Let's just get this over and done with as soon as possible."

He began to go into the cafeteria, but Sophia caught his arm. "The ballroom's that way," she said, pointing in the opposite direction. That's when Davis remembered that the annual Garden Festival Party was being held that night. He shook his head.

"I don't go to parties," he said. Sophia pouted.

"But it'll be fun!" she said. "Come on, I want to get on the dance floor before it gets packed."

Davis shrugged. How bad could it be? After all, he _was _going to this party with the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, and he could dance pretty well.

"Sure, why not?" he said. "Let's go to that party."

Sophia literally jumped for joy. "OK! Let's go!" she said. Davis almost smiled, almost. This girl was quite carefree, considering the fact that her father was one of the most hated men in Garden and that she had almost no chance of making any real friends.

_"Stop thinking like that!" _he thought angrily. _"What's done is done, there's no way we can change the past! The other students will just have to accept Sophia for who she is!" _

_ _

He followed Sophia to the ballroom at a leisurely pace.

------------------------

Felicia almost choked on her hotdog when she saw Davis walk in with Sophia. She got Brandon's attention and pointed at the entrance. Brandon's jaw dropped.

"Davis Leonhart with a _girl_?" he said. "I wish I had a camera!"

Felicia giggled. "Me too. This might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!" she said.

"Is that Davis with a girl?" somebody said. Brandon and Felicia turned around. The owner of the voice was a tall blonde-haired, blue-eyed SeeD, dressed in his SeeD uniform.

"Yes, Robert, it's Davis with a girl," Felicia said. "Come on, have a seat and lets see what happens."

Robert Trepe nodded and sat down with a plate full of hotdogs and a bottle of beer.

---------------------------------

Davis was perfectly aware of the surprised looks on the student's faces when he walked in with Sophia. But he was positively shocked when his parents came up to their table and sat down.

"Squall, get the camera! Our son's on a _date_!" Rinoa said sarcastically. Davis sighed.

"Funny, Mom," he said. Rinoa smiled.

"So, who is this girl you're with?" she asked. Davis shrugged.

"Mom, Dad, meet Sophia Almasy."

Rinoa smiled. "A pleasure to meet you," she said. She looked at Squall, who just shrugged. Sophia just smiled.

"I'll take that as a 'Nice to meet you'," she said. "I take it you don't care that I'm your…rival's daughter? You never know, I might just be more trouble than he was."

Squall shrugged. "What's done is done, you can't change the past, and the future is uncertain," he said. Sophia chuckled.

"I was only kidding anyway. I have my fathers looks, but my behaviour is more like my mother's behaviour when she was my age," she said. The music started to play again, and she looked intently at Davis.

"What?" he asked.

"Come on, let's dance!" Sophia said, grabbing his hand and pulling him onto the dance floor. As she dragged him along, Rinoa chuckled.

"This is exactly how we met," she said. "At a party, and we danced, remember?"

"Yeah, I remember that I didn't want to dance, and that you almost forced me to," he said.

"But you turned out to be a pretty good dancer," said Rinoa. Squall said nothing, and they both watched Sophia and Davis dance to the song 'Eyes on Me'.

--------------------------------------

_LATER THAT NIGHT _

_ _

"Well I had fun tonight," Sophia said, smiling. "What about you?"

Davis shrugged. "Yeah," he said. "Well, good night."

Davis turned to walk away. "Hey!" said Sophia. "What about my kiss goodnight?"

Davis turned and stared at her. "What?" he asked.

"You heard me."

"But I hardly know you."

Sophia laughed. "Oh brother!" she said. "Fine, if you won't kiss me, then I'll just have to kiss you."

She marched straight up to him, threw her arms around his neck, and gave him a passionate kiss. Davis' eyes went wide, and he pushed himself away.

"Good night, Sophia," he said. He walked away briskly, and Sophia smiled. He was really cute, and a good kisser too. She shrugged.

"There's always next time," she said. She opened the door to her dorm and went inside.

---------------------

Davis stopped for a second to catch his breath. Sophia had just kissed him, and he had returned her kiss. What was he doing? This wasn't like him at all! Could he be…in love? No, that couldn't be it; he had only known Sophia for two days. But she was really beautiful…. Davis shrugged and went into his dorm to go to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter three Chapter three

"Hi." 

Davis looked up from his Weapons Monthly magazine to see Sophia standing in front of him. Today she was wearing a bright red T-shirt and white pants. Davis thought that she looked absolutely gorgeous, but he didn't say so. Instead he said, "Hi." 

Sophia sat down next to him. "About last night…" she began. 

"What about it?" Davis asked, not looking up from his magazine. 

"That kiss…" 

"That should never have happened," Davis said quickly. _"But it was a great kiss, and she's a great girl… What am I doing, acting so cold towards her like this?" _

_ _

Sophia sighed. "I can see that you're busy right now. I'll see you later, OK?" she said hopefully. Davis just shrugged.

"Whatever." 

Sophia was silent as she stood up and walked out of the cafeteria. Felicia, who had been watching, was not impressed. She marched over and ripped the magazine from Davis' hands. 

"What the hell are you doing?" Davis said. Felicia stared at him. 

"I know what happened last night, Davis Leonhart! I know that you care about her!" she said, almost yelling. Davis sat back calmly and looked at her. 

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said. But Felicia knew better. She grabbed the chair and flipped it over, sending Davis to the floor. Before he could move, her foot was planted on his chest. 

"Now you listen to me: you had better apologise to Sophia, got it?" she said, grinding her foot into Davis' ribs. "If you don't there will be hell to pay!" 

With that, Felicia stormed off and Davis stood up. All of the students in the cafeteria were staring at him. "What?" he said. They all looked away. 

_"Great," _Davis thought. _"I hurt Sophia's feelings, and I've gotten Felicia mad at me. What else can go wrong today?" _

_ _

Davis sighed and went to find Sophia so that he could apologise to her. It didn't take him long to find her; she was upstairs on the second floor balcony, staring into space. He leant on the railing right next to her and cleared his throat. 

"I, uh…" he began. Sophia turned to look at him. Her face was red and puffy. Had she been crying? 

"Yes?" she said rather coldly. "What do you want?" 

"I just wanted to apologise for what I said in the cafeteria," said Davis. "But we barely know each other…" 

Sophia stared at him. _"Has he forgotten?" _she thought. _"Has his GF really erased the memory of our childhood friendship?" _

_ _

"…And I just feel that if we move too fast, we'll regret it later."

Sophia eyed him. "Later?" she said. "Hey, are you trying to ask me out?" 

Davis nearly choked. "Well, I, uh…" he said. _"Dammit, now she's gotten me all nervous! OK, so I was going to ask her out. I mean, she's really beautiful, and I feel…attracted towards her for some reason." _

_ _

"Well?" Sophia said, almost grinning. Davis sighed.

"Yes," he said at length. "I was trying to ask you out." 

Sophia smiled. _"Maybe, just maybe, there's some fragment of his early childhood memories when we used to play together in the fields outside Winhill,"_ she thought. "Of course I'll go out with you!" 

Davis seemed surprised, but he smiled. "Shall we meet in the secret area tonight?" he said. Sophia nodded. 

"Sure thing!" she said cheerfully. "Around eight?" 

"Yeah, around eight." 

Sophia smiled and walked away waving. Davis watched her leave and turned to look over the balcony. 

"See how easy that was?" 

Felicia popped her head around the corner and smiled. 

"Were you eavesdropping?" Davis asked. Felicia shrugged. 

"I didn't mean to. I was talking with Quistis and was on my way back when I heard you and Sophia talking. I'm glad that you two are going out. You're really suited for each other, you know that?" she said. Davis waved his hand dismissively. 

"Whatever," he said. _"But she's right: Sophia and I seem to make a very good couple." _

_ _

The intercom blared to life: "Will Sophia Almasy and Davis Leonhart please report to the bridge. I repeat…"

Davis listened and sighed. "I have to go," he said. "Well, I guess I'll see you later." 

Felicia nodded. "Yeah, later." 

Davis got into the elevator and pushed the button for the third floor. The doors closed and he was carried up. He stepped off of the elevator and went onto the lift that took him to the bridge. Sophia was already there, and so were his father, and his mother. She had a worried look on her face. 

"I have a mission for the two of you," said Squall. "You've been hired to investigate rumours of a Sorceress in the town of Kikon near the outskirts of the Dingo Desert in Galbadia. If or when you find this Sorceress you are to ascertain whether or not she is a threat. If she is indeed a threat, do not try and engage her in battle, call for backup instead. On the other hand, if she isn't a threat, you are to leave her be, as we do not want to start the Third Sorceress War. Davis is the squad leader. Sophia, you are to follow his orders and support him to your fullest." 

"Yes, sir," Sophia said, saluting. Davis also saluted, but was silent. This was his first mission in, what, four months? 

"When do we leave?" Sophia asked. 

"As soon as we reach Kikon," Squall said. "And we'll be there in about…10 minutes. You have until then to get ready." 

The two SeeDs saluted and got onto the lift. They went down. When they were the office, Davis sighed. 

"I guess that we have to postpone our date," he said. 

"Not at all." 

Davis blinked at her. 

"I've heard that the desert is really romantic at night," Sophia said. "We can have our date in Kikon." 

Davis sighed. _"She just doesn't give up," _he thought. "Sure, that sounds like fun…if you want to freeze to death in the cold desert night." 

Sophia frowned. "Oh my, I can see that I have my work cut out for me," she said. "That is, if I want to make you come out of your proverbial shell." 

Davis shrugged. "Good luck," he said. 

-------------------- 

10 MINUTES LATER

The town of Kikon was every bit a desert town. The houses were made from wood, and the streets were just tracks in the dirt where the people, chocobos, dogs and cats walked every day. The houses were built in rows on either side of the 'road'. There was a pub,an inn, a jailhouse and (to both Sophia's and Davis' surprise) a Junk shop. Not to mention the general store. But the most amazing thing was the building in the center of the town: it was large, beautifully painted and it was the only building that was not made of wood. It was the Town Hall where the mayor of Kikon, one Gary Jones, resided. It was the biggest building there, with statues of gargoyles guarding the door from above. The stairs leading up to the huge double doors were polished and made of marble with two marble lions standing guard on pedestals at the top of the steps, their mouths open and baring their teeth. But what amazed the two SeeDs the most were the doors themselves: they were made from polished bronze that was kept cool with some kind of cooling system at the sides of the doors. 

"I wonder what the cost of this building was?" Davis said. "I mean; it's so grand compared to the rest of this town." 

Sophia nodded. "I know, but we have to go and see the mayor about this Sorceress," she said. "Come on, Mr. Leader." 

Davis shrugged. "Yeah, of course," he said. "And after that we have to get a room at the inn." 

Davis noticed the sly look on her face. "With two separate beds," he added quickly. Sophia giggled. 

"You're too serious!" she said. "Come on, how old are you? You're still a teenager for crying out loud! Act like one for a change!" 

"Whatever, let's just go and see the mayor." 

They walked up the stairs and into the building. It was even more stunning than the outside. The carpet was made from some kind of soft material, and the walls were draped with tapestries depicting scenes from battles long forgotten. Except for one: it showed two men with gunblades standing on a parade float duelling. Davis didn't notice this, and it would be that lack of observation that would cost him dearly in the near future, because right next to that was an image of a tall, brown-haired SeeD falling in battle in defence of a blonde-haired woman in front of a huge floating structure: Balamb Garden. 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter four Chapter four

** **

Mayor Jones was a small, grumpy man with a baldhead and a permanent scowl on his face. He looked at Davis and Sophia in obvious contempt.

"We have not got a Sorceress here," he said gruffly. "So you warmongers can just leave now." 

Davis and Sophia looked at each other. They hadn't really expected a warm welcome in the first place, but the way this man was treating them was inexcusable. 

"With all due respect, Mayor, we were sent here to find out whether or not you are harbouring a Sorceress in this town, and if you are, we are to see if she is a threat to international peace," said Davis. The mayor just glared at him. 

"And what if we were harbouring a Sorceress?" he said. 

"Then we would talk to her and merely see if she has any hostile intentions," replied Davis. _"What's wrong with this guy?" _

_ _

"You're one to talk, Mr. Leonhart," the mayor said. "After all, _your _mother is a Sorceress, is she not?" 

Davis was taken aback. How had he known that? The mayor smirked. 

"Let me ask you a question. If your mother was to become the world's enemy, what would you do?" he said. Davis looked at him. That was not an easy question to answer, so he said nothing, but Sophia did. 

"Listen to me you little jackass," she said. "We are here to see if you have a Sorceress in this town, not to look into my comrade's family history." 

The mayor looked at her. "This coming from the daughter of the man that nearly betrayed, no, _did _betray the world by becoming the Knight to Ultimecia?" he said. "I'm surprised that they let you into Garden, let alone allowed you to enter SeeD." 

Sophia lost her temper. She took out her gunblade and buried it into the mayor's desk. "Don't you talk to _me _about my father!" she screamed. "He was being manipulated!" 

The mayor hardly seemed phased. He stood up and pressed a button on his desk. 

"Security, please come and escort these two SeeDs to the outskirts of Kikon. They have outstayed their welcome." 

A minute later a trio of armed guards came into the room. Sophia took her gunblade out of the desk and put it away. Davis could tell that unless he did something fast, there was going to be trouble. 

"Come on Sophia," he said. "We're not getting anywhere. We'll just come back here later and investigate this town with a full SeeD escort." 

Sophia looked at him. "Fine." 

They allowed the guards to escort them to the outskirts of the town. When the guards had gone, Davis turned to Sophia. She was still fuming because of what the Mayor had said. 

"What happened back there?" he said. "How could you have lost your temper like that?" 

Sophia glanced at him. "My father has had this stigma attached to him because he helped Ultimecia create havoc from the future, and people always assume that because I'm his daughter, I'll cause trouble too." 

Davis nodded. "I think I understand." 

Sophia turned and looked at him curiously. "When he mentioned your mother being a Sorceress, you hardly seemed phased. Why didn't you say anything?" she asked. Davis shrugged. 

"My mother never wanted to become a Sorceress, but she did, and there's nothing I or anybody else can do or say that will change that, so I've just learned to live with it," he replied. Sophia remained silent for a moment as she thought about his words. 

"You're right," she said. Davis just looked down at the ground. 

"Well, since we're obviously not getting anywhere here, let's radio Garden and tell them to pick us up." 

Sophia nodded and took a small radio out off her backpack. She radioed Garden and told them that the mayor of Kikon wouldn't cooperate, and that they had been thrown out of the town and were waiting on the outskirts. The voice at the other end of the line confirmed and told her that they would be there in 5 minutes. 

"Now all we have to do is wait," Sophia said. 

"Yeah, sure," said Davis. 

Something hit Sophia in the back and she fell to the ground. Davis ducked and checked on her. It was some kind of dart. Poison. Davis quickly took out a Remedy and lifted Sophia's head up and poured the remedy into her throat. Soon, the Remedy would cancel out the poison in Sophia's body. Davis heard laughter nearby, and jumped to his feet, his gunblade already in his hands. Behind him, the Garden moved in closer. The image in the tapestry was coming true, but Davis didn't know that. Davis turned, and saw a single man standing behind him, a dart gun in his right hand, and a sword in his left. This man was tall, dark skinned with black hair and a scarred face. He grinned at Davis. 

"Oh goody!" he said. "More SeeDs to kill!" 

Davis raised his gunblade as the man charged him. The man swung downwards with his sword, but Davis easily parried the blow and raised his palm. 

"Quake!" 

He and Sophia disappeared, and the ground beneath the would-be attacker cracked and he was thrown up and down by the violent shaking of the Quake spell. When Davis and Sophia reappeared, the man grinned evilly, and the Garden was now right behind them. Davis scowled, and charged. The man sidestepped and brought his blade downwards, cutting a huge gash in Davis' side. Davis stumbled, but resumed his fighting stance. He had no time to heal himself, and prepared to defend. He parried each blow and countered, and then the man feigned a downward swipe, and when Davis moved to block it, his attacker cut upwards, cutting another gash, this time in Davis' chest. Davis collapsed, and the man raised his sword to finish the job. As he was about to stab downwards, a bullet went into his head, killing him instantly. Felicia ran over to her friends, and gasped at Davis' wounds. If she didn't do something fast, he was going to die. She concentrated on Triple Curaga spells and healed the wounds, but Davis was still unconscious. Behind her, Sophia woke up and gasped. 

"DAVIS!" she yelled. She knelt down next to him. "What happened?" she asked. Felicia shook her head. 

"He was about to be killed by that man over there," she said, pointing to the fallen attacker. "I only just managed to take him out and heal the wounds, but Davis has lost a lot of blood and will need to rest. Help me carry him to the Garden infirmary." 

Sophia nodded and helped Felicia carry Davis to the infirmary. 

---------------------------- 

"How could he have been taken down so easily?" Sophia said. "I heard that he is one of the best fighters in Garden." 

Felicia shook her head. "I examined his attacker's body. He was wearing some kind of body armour. Nothing short of an armour-piercing missile could have put him down, and I also found traces of Reflect, Shell and Regen spells around his body. This man was prepared for just about anything." 

The door opened, and Rinoa walked in. She was in a state of shock. "Why did that man attack you two?" she asked. Sophia shook her head. 

"I have no idea," she replied. "I was unconscious during the battle." 

"I found an empty Remedy bottle next to you. I think that the attacker first poisoned you, and then attacked Davis," Felicia said. "Davis must have given you a Remedy before he was attacked." 

Rinoa let out a deep breath. "Sophia, your report says that the town mayor knew that I was Davis' mother, and that Seifer was your father," she said. "Any idea how?" 

"None at all," replied Sophia. "But I think that he's hiding something in that town. It was too quiet." 

"Maybe he's hiding a Sorceress and is afraid to hand her over," Felicia said. Sophia shook her head. 

"I don't think so. That man has to be one of the smuggest people that I've ever met. If he was afraid, then he's very good at hiding his fear." 

"I think that we should go back to that town and investigate it. Something's going on, and it's obviously a threat to international security," Felicia remarked. "But this time, we should send in at least three squads and arm them to the teeth." 

Rinoa and Sophia agreed completely. "But we have to see what Squall has to about it," Sophia said. 

"He's already getting two squads ready," said Rinoa. "I think that Felicia, Brandon and you are going to form the third squad." 

"Good," Sophia said. "Because I am personally going to ring the neck of that little asshole myself if we find anything suspicious in Kikon." 

Rinoa and Felicia glanced at each other, and then at Sophia. All she needed to do now was say 'rage' and she would be just like Fujin, scary as that thought was. 

---------------------------- 

The town was as quiet as before, except for the fact that the mayor had called in reinforcements in the form of Galbadian soldiers that had been posted in the surrounding area. The nine SeeDs were outnumbered at least 10-to-1, but they were trained for this kind of combat. Sophia closed her hand around the handle of her gunblade and brought it out as the first of the enemy soldiers charged at them. She easily sidestepped his blade, and brought her gunblade down across the back of his neck, felling him. She raised her palm and hit another soldier with a Firaga spell, burning him to death and concentrating on her next opponent, who went down just as easily, this time with two swipes of her gunblade. She saw Felicia and Brandon fending off other G-soldiers just as easily. They clearly did not need any help. But another SeeD did. She was being attacked by two G-soldiers at the same time, and was out matched. Scowling, Sophia jumped at the one soldier and took his head off with her gunblade, and felled the second soldier with a Death spell. The SeeD thanked her and picked up her flail before rushing off into battle again. Sophia saw ten soldiers go down as a huge sheet of ice covered them. Squall and his friends had obviously entered the fray, because she knew for a fact that Selphie always had the Ice GF Junctioned. Sophia decided to summon her own GF, Jakos. She had a good compatibility with him, so he appeared in a matter of seconds. 

"Terra Hammer," she said. 

She faded out from sight and was replaced by a humanoid GF with a large hammer in his hands. This was Jakos, an Earth Elemental GF. He raised his hammer, and brought it crashing down onto the ground, causing a massive earthquake that killed off at least fifty of the soldiers. Jakos disappeared into the very quake that he had caused and Sophia reappeared; ready to finish the battle. Another soldier, who went down with a Flare spell, charged her. 

Finally, after many hours of combat, the battle was over. Miraculously, there had been no SeeD casualties. Sophia wondered if it was because they were trained so well, or because the soldiers weren't. Either way, the welcome wagon that they had just fought off had seemed pretty suspicious, and Sophia was ready to storm in on the mayor's office and ring his neck. The only problem was that he had escaped during the battle, and the office was burnt to the ground, destroying any clues that they might have found as to why, or how, he had called in those Galbadian soldiers to attack them like that. 

------------------------------------ 

THE FOLLOWING MONDAY 

Davis opened his eyes slowly. It took him a moment to realise that he was in Balamb Garden's infirmary, and that his chest and side was covered in bandages. He sat up with effort. He found that he could breath without too much pain, but if he tried to stand up, the wound at his side protested and he was forced to sit down again. The door opened and Doctor Kadawoki walked in. 

"I see that you're finally awake," she said. Davis glanced at her. 

"How long was I out for?" 

"Two days." 

Davis sighed. _"At least I'm alive. Wait, what about…?" _

_ _

"What about Sophia? Is she all right?" he said. "She was poisoned before I was attacked."

Kadawoki looked at him. "She's fine. The Remedy you gave her saved her life, but you almost lost yours." 

Davis shrugged, causing a little bit of pain in his chest and side. He moved to stand up, and immediately sat down again because of the pain in his side. 

"You need to stay here and rest for a while," Kadawoki said. "You're lucky that Felicia managed to heal those wounds before you lost too much blood, otherwise…" 

Davis got the message. _"So Felicia saved my life? Great, now I owe her my life. Perfect," _he thought. As if she was summoned, Felicia appeared in the doorway. When she saw that Davis was all right, she smiled. 

"You're awake!" she said. "Sophia is going to be so happy! She's been ready to start a huge war because you were injured. She really cares about you, you know." 

"Yeah, I know," said Davis. _"I care about her too…" _

_ _

"I think that we should leave him to rest for now," Kadawoki said. "He still needs to heal completely. Not even a Full-Cure spell can heal those wounds fully."

Felicia nodded. "I'll tell Sophia that you're OK," she said to Davis. 

Davis glanced at her. "You do that," he said. _"I'm changing. Normally, I would just say 'whatever' and be done with it." _

_ _

Felicia chuckled and ran off. Something told Davis that he was missing something important here, but he was just too tired to care. He lay back and fell asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter five Chapter five

** **

"You awake?" 

Davis opened his eyes and saw Sophia standing over him. She looked absolutely stunning when the light reflected off of her blonde hair, like an angel. 

"I am now," he said. Sophia smiled. 

"I'm glad you're OK," she said. "We had a huge battle in Kikon on Saturday, and Mayor Jones got away. We're currently investigating his background, his hometown, and his birthday. And where he might go now to avoid the authorities." 

Davis got the feeling that she wasn't telling him everything. "What aren't you telling me?" he asked. Sophia let out a deep breath. 

"The man that attacked you had Reflect, Shell and Regen cast on himself, and he was wearing body armour that, according to Felicia, would take an armour-piercing rocket to break. Your gunblade would have been useless, and his strength was augmented somehow. We think that he found a GF and Junctioned it to himself and used an Str-J ability," she said. Davis nodded. 

"So there was no way that I could have defeated him?" he said. Sophia nodded. 

"None at all. You're lucky that Felicia is such a brilliant shot. She hit him right in the forehead with that machine gun of hers." 

"You're not very encouraging." 

"I try," said Sophia 

Sophia chuckled. "Hey, when you're well enough, how about we go on that date that was so rudely interrupted?" she said. Davis smiled. 

"Sure. I'll take you to see the sights of Deling City," he said. "That is, if we're still in Galbadia." 

"We are. You're father is busy talking to General Caraway about the G-soldiers in Kikon. He thinks that they might have been deserters." 

Davis smiled. "Well then, we can go as soon as I'm feeling better." 

"At the rate you're healing, that will be a while." 

"Funny." 

There was a knock at the infirmary door, and Xu looked inside. "Sophia, you have visitors." 

Sophia looked at her, and smiled when she saw her parents in the doorway. 

"Mom, Dad!" she said, running over and hugging each of them in turn. "What are you guys doing here?" 

"Paying a visit to our daughter, what else?" Seifer said. He looked over at Davis and let out a breath. "What happened to you?" he asked. Davis just looked at him. 

"I got into a fight and lost," he said. Seifer grinned. 

"Like father like son," he said. "Your old man lost to me once." 

"I believe that that was a training session. If I hadn't fought the guy that attacked me, your daughter would be dead right now. I gave her a Remedy after my nameless attacker poisoned her. Right after that I fought him, and woke up two days later in the infirmary." 

Seifer and Fujin looked at each other. "That true?" he asked Sophia. She nodded. 

"And he's also my boyfriend," she said. Seifer looked at her in disbelief. 

"You're going out with Squall's son?" he asked. 

"And what's wrong with that?" said an angry sounding voice from behind Seifer. They turned and saw Rinoa standing in the infirmary. 

"Hello Rinoa," Fujin said. She had stopped speaking in short sentences years ago, and now spoke normally. Rinoa smiled. 

"Hi, Fujin. How are things with you and Seifer?" she said. 

"Relatively normal," replied Fujin. "Except for the way he snores, it keeps me up at night." 

"I'm standing right here, you know!" Seifer said. Rinoa and Fujin glanced at him, and laughed in unison. 

"Sorry about that, Seifer," said Fujin. "But your snoring _does _keep me up at night." 

Seifer looked at her. "Well, maybe if you learnt to cook…" 

Fujin kicked his shin hard. "What was that?" she said. Seifer, who was now rubbing his shin, looked at her. 

"Nothing," he said. Sophia packed out laughing. The three of them stared at her. 

"And what are you laughing at?" Fujin said. 

"What else? You two! How did I ever end up with parents who are always beating each other up, and still manage to stay married?" Sophia replied between laughs. Seifer sighed. 

"Well, we have to get going. Fujin has an appointment with a cooking instructor…" he began. Fujin punched him in the gut. 

"I'm kidding!" Seifer said. "But seriously, we have to visit Raijin in FH." 

"Have fun," Davis said. He wasn't as amused by Seifer and Fujin's little show as Sophia was. He just found it annoying. 

Seifer just looked at him and walked out. Fujin shrugged. 

"Bye Rinoa, good seeing you again," she said. "Bye Sophia! Hey, Davis! Take care of my daughter, OK?" 

Davis waved his hand. "No worries there," he said. Fujin nodded and walked out. 

-------------------------- 

GENERAL CARAWAY'S RESIDENCE 

Caraway read through Squall's reports and sighed. "Well," he said. "It's true that about 150 soldiers deserted about three months ago, and it's possible that they were hired as mercenaries by Jones. What I don't understand is why they deserted in the first place. There's nothing serious going on in Galbadia right now, and I know for a fact that the citizens are happy with President Williams in power." 

Squall looked at him and leaned back in his chair. "Maybe the deserters felt that you weren't paying them enough," he said. Caraway glanced at the SeeD. 

"That is a possibility," he confessed. "Or maybe they weren't happy with the new system that Williams has in place in the military." 

Squall leaned forward. "What new system?" he asked, his interest peaked. Caraway sighed. 

"We are currently experimenting with using a Draw system like you SeeDs do," he said. "But so far, all of our attempts have failed, and one of our more successful soldiers escaped from the lab and went on a killing spree…" 

"He's dead," Squall said. "He attacked my son and was taken out by our best sniper, Felicia Kinneas." 

Caraway looked at Squall. "How did you manage to kill him? He was wearing bulletproof armour and had Shell, Reflect, and Regen cast on him. Nothing short of an armour-piercing missile could have downed him." 

"Felicia shot him in the head," Squall said. "It's a basic rule of thumb that you should go for a head-shot before anything else."

Caraway thought about that for a second. "That makes sense," he said. "It's no wonder that SeeD is considered one of the best Military Institutions in the world." 

Squall shrugged. "Whatever." 

Caraway put the papers in a neat pile and stood up. "Thank you for seeing me about those deserters Squall," he said. "And…say hello to Rinoa for me." 

_"It's not like she'll appreciate it,"_ Squall thought. "I'll do just that." 

Squall stood up and left the house with new worries. So the person that attacked Davis and Sophia was part of some sort of experiment to give Galbadian soldiers a Draw system? This was not good. Squall headed back to Garden just as Seifer and Fujin left. 

------------------------- 

Davis stood up, expecting pain. There was none, which meant that the elixir that he drank earlier was doing its job. That was good, as it meant that he and Sophia could go on that date. He got dressed and headed for the showers. It had been a while since he had had a good shower, and he felt dirty, and he hated to feel dirty. 

------------------------- 

Davis had checked his wounds earlier before he had gotten into the shower, and was surprised to see that they were almost healed. Either that elixir was doing an extraordinary job of healing him, or he suddenly healed fast. He had put the thought into the back of his mind for later. Right now he needed something to eat before he collapsed from hunger. When he got to the cafeteria, he ordered a grilled cheese sandwich along with some tea. He found a table where he could be alone and sat down. He ate his food quickly and drank his tea even faster. He took his plate and cup to the counter before heading toward the Garden exit to meet Sophia. 


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter six Chapter six

** **

"You look lovely," said Davis, looking at Sophia. She was wearing a beautiful blue dress that not only brought out her eyes, but also made her look exquisite. In short, she was a breathtaking sight. 

"Thanks," she said. "You don't look so bad yourself." 

Davis smiled. "This is what I normally wear," he said. 

"Well it makes you look perfectly handsome," Sophia said. "Shall we go?" 

"Yes." 

Davis took Sophia's hand in his and they walked into Deling City. It was quite a beautiful city really. The buses were quite busy tonight, so Davis and Sophia chose to walk instead. They looked through the shopping arcade, and Sophia found something that she liked: an expensive-looking necklace with angel wings in the center. It cost around 20, 000 Gil. Sophia realised that she could never afford it, but Davis could. He was one of the few SeeDs that had an "A" SeeD rank. He had more than enough money with him at the moment, and went inside. A few minutes later he walked out of the store with the necklace in his hands. Sophia smiled as he put the necklace around her neck. 

"Oh thank you!" she said, flinging her arms around his neck and kissing him. "I love it!" 

Davis went red. "It looks good on you," he said. Sophia smiled. 

"Shall we get a bite to eat?" she said. Davis nodded. It had been a good three hours since his last meal, and he was getting hungry. They went into the nearest restaurant and found a table to sit at. The waiter gave them a menu each, and they ordered, of all the delicious things on the menu, a plate of hotdogs each. The waiter looked slightly confused, but nodded. 

"And to drink?" he asked. They ordered some tea, which really confused the waiter. But he took their order and left them alone. Sophia chuckled. 

"Do you think we confused him?" she asked. 

"Undoubtedly," Davis replied. "After all, how many people come in here and order a plate of hotdogs each and some tea?" 

Sophia covered her mouth to prevent her laughter from disturbing the other diners. "Not many," she said. They talked until their food arrived, at which point they ate and just talked some more. Davis found himself falling more and more in love with Sophia the more she told him about her. It was the same for Sophia; she just loved to hear the sound of Davis' voice talking to her. They got the bill, and Davis paid for it. Eighteen hotdogs (nine for each of them) and two cups of tea each only cost around 50 Gil. Not bad at all. They left a good tip of 10 Gil for the waiter and left the restaurant to go back to Garden. When they got there, Squall was waiting with an angry expression on his face. His mood improved when he saw how happy his son was with Sophia. He forgot what he was going to say to them, and just walked away before they saw him. The two little lovebirds got back onto the Garden and headed for the dormitories. Davis held Sophia's hands until they got to her dorm door. 

"I had fun tonight," Sophia said. 

"Yeah, me too," replied Davis. He looked into Sophia's deep, sea-blue eyes and leant in closer and kissed her. She returned the kiss, and before they knew what they were doing, they were in Sophia's dorm with the door closed behind them. Davis' hand found its way up to Sophia's dress strap and he unhooked it. The dress fell to the ground and Sophia was standing there in only her underwear and her necklace. 

"You're beautiful," Davis said, kissing her neck. Sophia didn't respond, she just unhooked her bra and let it drop to the ground. She felt Davis' one hand caress her breast, and the other one go down to remove her panties. 

"I love you, Davis Leonhart," she said as she took off his shirt and unbuckled his belt to let down his pants. Davis put his mouth on her breast as she took off his underwear and she felt his hardness against her bare skin. Instead of entering her, though, Davis put his head between her legs and his tongue darted inside of her and out again. Sophia closed her eyes and moaned silently. Davis picked her up and put her on the bed before kissing her chest again. He ran his tongue down her body until it went between her thighs, and it darted inside and outside again. She groaned, every fibre in her being saying that this was right. She lifted his head. 

"Take me," she said. Davis complied and entered her. She gasped as the brief pain shot through her body, but soon after that he seemed to be drilling deeper and deeper inside of her, faster and faster. And the entire time, he was holding onto her breasts and kissing her neck. She could hear him groaning slightly as he felt the pleasure of their love take a physical form, and she could feel it rising within her own body. She was aware that Davis was rubbing himself against her, and that she was doing the same to him. Finally, she could feel her sensuality rising within her. Sophia couldn't hold it in any longer; she opened her mouth and screamed in ecstasy. 

"I love you, Sophia." 

"And I love you, Davis." 

---------------------------------- 

Irvine sat across the table from his wife and stared into her emerald green eyes. Selphie looked back at him and smiled. 

"Damn, you're beautiful," Irvine said. 

"And you're handsome," replied Selphie. 

"Hey, Mom, Dad!" 

Felicia came running up to their table. The two older SeeDs looked at their daughter. 

"What is it?" Irvine asked. "You interrupted a perfectly good flirting session." 

Selphie giggled. "Oh, you're so naughty Irvy!" she said. Irvine grinned. 

"Well, I _do _try," he said. Felicia sighed, her parents had not changed a bit since they were her age. 

"I'm having a little bit of trouble with one of my newer weapons," she said. "It's a high-powered chain-gun. But it keeps on jamming, and I can't figure out what's wrong." 

Irvine smiled. "That's my department!" he said. "Show me the gun, and I'll show you a master at work!" 

Selphie rolled her eyes. _"Boys and their toys," _she thought. _"Some things never change." _

_ _

Felicia and Irvine left to see what the problem was with her newest gun, leaving Selphie alone to stare into her coffee. She often wondered why she liked it so sweet, all it did was get her on a sugar high, and then things started to blow up, namely the training center monsters. Selphie grinned. Somebody had once said that she was a pyro on a sugar high. Selphie was just around the corner and overheard him, and she packed out laughing. Of course, what he said was true: she always seemed to be on a sugar high, and she loved to blow things up. Maybe she was a pyro after all.

-------------- 

Irvine examined his daughter's newest gun. It was heavy, had six barrels and was belt-fed. Irvine looked at the belt of bullets going into the chamber, and found the problem: the belt was jammed. 

"Here's your problem," he said. "The belt is getting jammed while feeding the bullets into the chamber." 

Irvine managed to take the belt of bullets out from the chamber and examined them. They were the wrong calibre. Whoever had owned this gun before had no idea what they were doing when they decided to put in bullets that were meant for a 12-millimetre type into a 9-millimetre chain-gun. 

"You need to empty the chamber and buy some 9-millimetre rounds," he said. "It'll cost you, but it'll be worth it if you're planning on using this gun in combat." 

Felicia nodded. "I'll head to the training center now," she said. "Then I'll find a T-Rexaur and blow it to hell with the remaining bullets." 

Irvine had to grin; Felicia was so much like Selphie it was almost scary. But she did have his passion for guns. 

"I'll see you later," he said, tipping his cowboy hat. Felicia nodded and slung her M203 over her shoulder, made sure that she had enough ammunition (which included some of her 'custom' grenades), picked up the chain-gun and headed for the training center. Irvine followed her out and went back to the cafeteria to finish his lunch with Selphie. 

------------------------------ 

The bullets ripped through the Grat as if it was paper and it slumped to the ground. That used up the last of the chain-gun bullets, so Felicia walked out before she ran into trouble. At least she could get some bullets from Deling City, since they were still parked outside in the Great Plains of Galbadia. She was right near the exit, when a T-Rexaur decided that she would make a good snack and attacked her. Felicia immediately dropped the chain-gun and readied her M203. She fired a grenade, forgetting that it was an incendiary grenade. The grenade hit dead center, and the T-Rexaur's head was blown apart, sending blood, bone and brains flying around her. 

"Oops, I forgot that I put an incendiary grenade in the launcher before I left," she said. "Oh well, time to leave." 

She picked up her chain-gun and left the training center, leaving the dead T-Rexaur for the other monsters. 

-------------------------------------- 

Davis and Sophia were walking hand-in-hand along the hallways of Garden. They had confessed their love for each other the previous night, and were now closer than ever both spiritually and physically. Davis smiled as he looked into Sophia's beautiful eyes. 

_"Like a deep blue sea," _he thought. _"Kind and beautiful. Just like Sophia herself." _

_ _

Their romantic walk was rudely interrupted when somebody blasted their way into the Garden through one of the walls and started to attack SeeDs. She was tall, had black hair and green eyes. She wore crimson red clothing and was taking SeeDs down with High-Level magic. 

"What the hell?!" Davis said. "Who the hell is that woman?!" 

The woman, as if she were reading his thoughts, cast a Firaga spell on Davis. The ball of fire burned Davis severely, the Para Magic enhanced for some odd reason. The woman, disappeared and reappeared beside Sophia, and cast Sleep on her. The SeeD went limp and fell into the woman's arms. Davis tried to attack, but the woman cast a Stop spell on him. She smirked. 

"I know that you are wondering who I am," she said. "Well, I'll tell you: I am the Sorceress Samantha Evans, and if you want your beloved Sophia back, Davis Leonhart, you will bring me the Lunastar!" 

The entire Garden went silent as the SeeDs took in what the woman had said. Another Sorceress? And what was this Lunastar? Samantha smirked one last time, and disappeared along with Sophia, leaving behind one hell of a mess. 


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter seven Chapter seven

** **

Davis put his gunblade in its sheath at his side and made sure that his GFs were Junctioned. Felicia and Brandon looked at their friend.

"Look, you don't even know where this Samantha woman is," Felicia said. "How will you find her?" 

"More importantly, what will you do if you find her?" Brandon said. 

"I'll find her," said Davis. "And then I'm going to rip out her fucking heart and shove it down her throat." 

Brandon and Felicia looked at each other. They had never heard Davis swear before. 

"On your own?" said Felicia. "You'll get killed! Who will save Sophia then?" 

"I'm not going to die," Davis said simply. "I'm going kill Samantha Evans." 

Neither of them said anything while he walked out. 

------------------------------ 

Squall was waiting at the Garden's exit. 

"I can tell that there's no way that I can stop you," he said. "So I want to give you something." 

Squall took out his Lionheart gunblade. "I want you to have this." 

Davis blinked at him. "I can't take that!" he said. "It's yours!" 

Squall shook his head. "I'm resigning from SeeD in two days," he said. "I won't need it after that." 

Davis nodded and took the gunblade. "I guess I should sell my Revolver gunblade then," he said. 

"Don't sell it, I'll keep it as a…souvenir from my days as a SeeD," said Squall. Davis shrugged and gave his father the Revolver gunblade and put the Lionheart (which was too big for his sheath) into his belt. 

"Well, I'm off to save the girl of my dreams," he said. "Wish me luck." 

"Luck is for those that need it," Squall said. "Wait. Good luck." 

"Funny." 

"Whatever." 

Davis just shrugged and left the Garden. 

----------------------------- 

THE TOWN OF KIKON 

"Why did you kidnap me?" Sophia said. 

Samantha looked at her. "I suppose that there's no harm in telling you, since I'm going to kill you and Leonhart when I get the Lunastar," she said. "I have been searching for a substance called Lunastar. This substance has Reflective and Regenerative properties, and is durable enough to withstand a rocket blast. I have heard that this Lunastar has been made into some sort of necklace, and that this necklace protects its wearer from harm; while at the same time enhancing his or her own abilities more than one hundred times. If I can get my hands on the necklace, nobody will be able to stop me." 

Samantha left Sophia alone in the jail cell. 

_"A necklace?" _she thought. She took out her angel wing necklace that Davis had bought her in Deling city. She examined it closely, and noticed that it was scratched. And beneath the gold surface it was black. Curious, Sophia took the necklace off and removed the gold paint. She looked in shock at what was beneath the fake beauty. It was made of a light mineral of some kind, and in the center of the Angel Wings was a small star. Sophia gasped; _this _must be the Lunastar! She quickly put the necklace back on and hid it beneath her SeeD uniform. Davis would find her soon, and then they would show that Sorceress what it means to be on the wrong end of a gunblade. 

At least, she hoped that it would happen that way. 

------------------------- 

Davis got off of the ferry just outside of Edea Kramer's house in Centra. He had come here because Edea was a former Sorceress, and he hoped that she could help him find Sophia. He went inside and found Edea sitting with her 10-year-old daughter, Raine. Edea and Cid had started their own family after the Second Sorceress War, and now lived peacefully in their old house in Centra. Edea smiled as he walked in. She had aged rather well, and, although she had a few grey hairs, her face didn't have many wrinkles. 

"Davis, how good to see you again," she said. "What brings you here?" 

Davis waved his hand. "Nothing good I'm afraid," he replied. "My girlfriend's been kidnapped by an evil Sorceress, and I have to bring her something called the Lunastar or she'll kill Sophia." 

Edea frowned. "The Lunastar?" she asked. Davis nodded. 

"Yes. Do you know anything about it?" he said. Edea sighed. 

"I think that you should sit down," she said. "Because what I am about to tell you has been a well kept secret amongst Sorceress's for generations." 

Davis sat down, as did Edea. She let out a deep breath. 

"The Lunastar is a very powerful magic item that can deflect any kind of spell or energy attack, and it has a natural ability to regenerate if it is damaged. If somebody with a high magic potential wears it, it increases that person's power one hundred fold," she said. "Can you see what I am saying?" 

Davis went pale. "If a Sorceress wears it…" 

Edea nodded grimly. "Then that Sorceress will be unstoppable," she said. Davis stood up. 

"Then I have to find this Sorceress and take her out!" he said. He turned to leave, but Edea put her hand on his arm. 

"You said that your girlfriend's name is Sophia, correct? Is that Sophia Almasy?" 

Davis nodded. "Yes, why?" he asked. Edea shook her head. 

"Nothing," she said. 

Davis looked at her with a confused look on his face. "Oh, have you noticed anything…odd happening around here lately?" he said. Edea closed her eyes and shook her head. 

"Not _here_," she said. "But I have heard some rumours that the Galbadian Town of Kikon has been taken over. You might want to look there first." 

Davis nodded. "Thank you, Mrs. Kramer," he said. Edea laughed. 

"Call me Edea," she said. Davis smiled, and left. 

Edea frowned as he left. If the Lunastar has been found again, then the entire world was in danger. 

------------------------------ 

Davis stepped back onto Garden and ran towards the lift, ignoring the students' complaints. He got into the lift and pushed the button for the 3rd floor and waited impatiently for the lift to arrive. When the doors opened, he ran out and onto the lift. Squall and Rinoa were talking in the bridge. 

"No time to explain," he said. "But we need to assemble every able-bodied SeeD in Garden and head over to Kikon." 

Squall looked confused. "Why?" he asked. 

"Because that's where the Sorceress is. And if the Sorceress is there, that means that Sophia is with her, and I'm planning on getting her back and killing Samantha Evans." 

Rinoa and Squall looked at each other, and Squall picked up the mic. 

"Attention all SeeDs," he said. "We are moving toward Kikon to do battle against the Sorceress Samantha Evans. You are to prepare yourselves for battle, as we will be arriving there in half an hour." 

He put down the mic and turned to Rinoa and Davis. 

"Let's do this," he said. 

Davis nodded. "I'm going to get Sophia back, and nobody is ever going to harm her again." 


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter eight Chapter eight

** **

Samantha frowned as she watched Garden approach Kikon. So they had figured out where she was, but she doubted that they had the Lunastar. She turned to Sophia, who was standing right next to her and smirking.

"You're dead," she said. Samantha laughed. 

"No, that would be you," she said. The smirk disappeared from Sophia's face. Samantha grinned. 

"Die!" 

Samantha sent a beam of energy flying straight at Sophia. But when the beam got within two feet of her, Sophia raised her hands and allowed the beam to destroy the bonds that held her. She dived out of the way and sent a Flare spell at Samantha and ran towards the building where she knew her gunblade and shuriken were being kept. She froze the door with a Blizzaga spell and ran straight through it. She spotted her weapons and grabbed them, a smile appearing on her face. 

_"Payback time, bitch," _she thought. She made sure that her gunblade was loaded and ran outside to meet Samantha. The Sorceress was running straight toward her. Sophia ran and met her in the middle of the town square. Samantha had a bladed quarterstaff in her hands, and swung it down to meet the Hyperion in a shower of sparks. Sophia called on her SeeD training and pushed the Sorceress back before casting Shell, Protect and any other support magic that she could think of on herself. She raised her gunblade and held it sideways, the way her father had when he had used it. She smiled at Samantha. 

"You want to finish this now before the other SeeDs get here, or shall we wait until they arrive and kick your sorry ass from here to next week?" she said. Samantha scowled. 

"I'll teach you the meaning of respect, child!" she said, rushing at Sophia again. They began to duel, neither fighter gaining an advantage, and neither of them using magic, yet. Sophia parried Samantha's quarterstaff easily, her SeeD training making her the superior physical fighter. She suddenly moved to the side, brought her gunblade down hard, and cut the staff into two pieces. Cursing, Samantha dropped it and stared at Sophia. 

"Enough of this folly," she said. Samantha called upon her full Sorceress power, causing raven-black wings to appear on her back and her eyes to glow yellow. 

"Die!" she said. Samantha cast Ultima on Sophia. Sophia was knocked down, but quickly got up. She was greeted by a Tripled Meteor spell. That last spell knocked her down, and she couldn't get up. She heard Samantha laugh. 

Samantha's staff repaired itself and came back into her hands. She raised it into the air. 

"DIE!" 

"I don't think so!" 

Davis appeared out of nowhere and knocked the staff from the Sorceress' hands with the Lionheart. He was _beyond _pissed off, and the Sorceress knew it, but she hid it well underneath her arrogance. 

"Do you think that you can defeat me?" she said. "That girl has the potential to be a Sorceress, and _she _could not defeat me!" 

Davis looked down at Sophia, and seeing her in pain only made him angrier. He looked at the Sorceress, an angry look in his eyes. Samantha felt fear for the first time in her life as she looked into those eyes. Davis raised his gunblade. 

"Prepare to die, you bitch," he said. Yellow fire appeared around Davis as he launched himself at Samantha, swinging his gunblade downwards and cutting her open from her throat down to her torso. She collapsed into a lifeless heap, but not before a brilliant flash of purple light erupted from her body and went into Sophia. Sophia opened her eyes slowly. When she saw Davis, she jumped up and hugged him. She looked into his face. 

"What?" she asked. 

"You received her powers. You're a Sorceress now." 

Sophia went pale for a second as she realised what he meant: they were going to have to fight. Even before she said anything, Davis had his gunblade raised in a battle-ready position. She nodded her head in understanding; they were both SeeDs, and SeeD was created to fight the Sorceress. She raised her gunblade, and the battle began. The two gunblades met amongst a shower of sparks and locked. The two fighters circled, their weapons still locked together. Sophia pushed Davis back and raised her palm, casting Thundaga on her beloved. Oh, how it hurt to have to fight the one she loved, and she was certain that he was hurting inside too. She forced those thoughts out of her mind as she moved to the side to avoid Davis' blade. Seeing her chance, she swung downwards, cutting Davis' shoulder and triggering the gunblade at the same time. Davis gritted his teeth and cast Regen on himself. The wound started to heal itself. He raised his palm and hit Sophia with a Firaga spell. 

_"I hate having to do this," _he thought. _"Dammit! I love this girl! Why am I fighting her?" _

_ _

Davis pushed his thoughts away, stepped around Sophia and brought his elbow down onto her back, hard. She stumbled forward, regained her composure, and turned. She was visibly angry, and she had no choice but to allow her Sorceress Powers to claim her. Blue-grey wings appeared on Sophia's back, and her eyes glowed yellow.

"I'm sorry, Davis," she said. She raised her palm… 

-------------------- 

Squall and Rinoa came within visual range just as Sophia called upon her Sorceress powers. They saw the blue-grey wings appear on her back, and they saw her raise her palm to cast an unknown spell on Davis. What they saw was the convergence of light over Davis' head. Ultima. But what happened next was terrifying: the light exploded, but instead of engulfing him in a green sphere and disappearing, the spell continued and cast Meteor and Flare at the same time. Davis was sent flying through a nearby building, and stayed down. 

"NO!" Squall screamed. His scream caught Sophia's attention. 

--------------------- 

Sophia's eyes filled with tears as she cast Judgement Day on Davis. She heard somebody scream "NO!" behind her, and turned to see Squall and Rinoa standing in the distance. She shook her head sadly as Squall charged at her, his gunblade in his hand. She raised her palm and sent a beam of energy at him. The attack hit him full on in the chest, and he went down.

_"What am I doing?" _Sophia thought. _"Defending myself? Yes, defending myself." _

_ _

She saw Rinoa running toward her, white Angel Wings spread wide. Sophia could actually feel the anger inside of her.

_"She has more experience than me when it comes to Sorcery," _she thought. She closed her eyes and tears rolled down her cheeks. _"I'm sorry, Rinoa." _

_ _

A light began to glow around Sophia's body as she called upon her full power. _"Everybody, I'm so, so sorry." _

_ _

"End of Fate."

The entire town was engulfed in a bright light. For a moment, nothing happened, but then, the entire town was blown into non-existence, leaving only a smoking crater. Within that crater, were four people: Rinoa, Squall, Sophia and Davis. Sophia was the only one standing. She was kneeling down next to Davis. He was still alive, but unconscious.

"I'm so sorry that it had to end this way, my beloved. I wanted to settle down with you and start a family, but I know that that is impossible. I am a Sorceress, and you are a SeeD. We will forever be enemies. Farewell."

Sophia stood up and walked into the desert, turning her back on Garden, SeeD and Davis, forever.


	9. Epilogue

Epilogue

**Epilogue **

Trabia, the most desolate place in the world other than Esthar. It was here that Sophia would live, within the frozen wastelands, away from everybody. No, not everybody, for that one night that she and Davis had spent together had created a new life: their daughter, Phoenix Almasy. The six-month-old baby was asleep in her cot near the fireplace of Sophia's home within one of the forests of Trabia. Sophia looked at the child. She was beautiful, and when she was awake she would often look at her mother through her big blue eyes. Sophia loved her child, but she knew that when she passed along her powers, she would have to pass them down to Phoenix. 

_"Davis, she has your eyes," _she thought. She closed her eyes and fought back the flood of tears collecting in her eyes. Davis, a SeeD, and the one that would have to hunt her down because she had fought him in Kikon, the town that she single-handedly destroyed. She knew that they would find her eventually, and that she would be forced to fight again. 

But, until that day came… 

…She would just be a woman taking care of her baby in the frozen wastelands that was Trabia. 

End of Book One


End file.
